Walmart – Justin Chow – 2024
Summary
Within Walmart’s zero emissions (ZE) heavy-duty (HD) fleet conversion strategy, Justin supported advancing the strategic framework for fleet electrification in Southern California.
Goals
Walmart aims to achieve zero-emissions across global operations by 2040. Walmart’s transportation fleet is a large contributor of these emissions in the US market, and strategic development is underway to convert the existing fleet to zero-emission assets by the 2040 target. Emission reduction mandates are accelerating fleet conversion to zero and near-zero emissions tractors, specifically in California with the 2023 adoption of the Advanced Clean Fleets (ACF) regulation. Thus, a fleet electrification strategy is in development for Walmart’s fleet in California. Justin evaluated the potential use of third-party (3P) HD charging stations as an alternative to accelerate fleet electrification testing and piloting in the Southern California (SoCal) market.
Solutions
Justin evaluated the potential use of 3P HD charging stations in SoCal by:
- Examining the landscape of 3P charging-as-a-service projects (existing and proposed) and comparing the advantages and disadvantages of using 3P charging stations versus charging behind-the-fence at Walmart supply chain facilities,
- Estimating the number of class 8 tractors eligible for electrification ensuring maximum utilization based on vehicle range and duty cycle
- Analyzing recent SoCal fleet route data to determine optimal locations for 3P charging stations to support fleet operations at minimal impact.
Potential Impact
3P HD charging stations give Walmart a short to mid-term solution to scale pilot activities in SoCal where land and energy access is competitive. Strategic placement of these charging stations is pivotal to limit disruptions to fleet operations as tractor charging is a higher time-consuming activity in comparison to diesel fueling.
